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A TERRORIST suspect allegedly connected to the October 1 Bali
bombings is being interrogated by Indonesian police in what appears
to be a breakthrough in the investigation.

Australian Federal Police forensic experts sealed off a house in
Denpasar yesterday afternoon, apparently based on information
received from the man, named only as Hasan.

The bombers are believed to have stayed at the house in the
weeks before the attacks, disappearing on the day of the
blasts.

Hasan was arrested in the East Java town of Jember late on
Sunday night, according to police spokesman Brigadier General
Sunarko Artanto. He was flown to Bali early on Monday.

"He is being interrogated," General Sunarko said yesterday.
"Based on his information we have searched an area in
Denpasar."

Hasan's arrest followed police interviews with 259 witnesses, he
said. If Hasan is involved, it would be the first significant
breakthrough in the investigation into the attacks that killed 23
people, including three suicide bombers.

Local media reports suggested Hasan had identified a Denpasar
boarding house where the bombers and another man lived in the weeks
before the bombing. The men allegedly disappeared on the night of
the blast.

There were unconfirmed reports that Hasan stayed with the men,
but returned to Jember three days before the attack. Neighbours
told The Age that the three disappeared on the morning of
the blasts.

Also yesterday, police smuggled out of Bali the three men
sentenced to death for their involvement in the 2002 bombings,
concerned that angry locals demanding their execution may storm
Kerobokan prison today.

Ali Gufron (alias Mukhlas), Imam Samudra and Amrozi (the
"smiling assassin") were ushered into an armoured van and rushed in
a police convoy to Denpasar airport, where they were flown to the
high-security Nusakambangan island prison off West Java.

A large demonstration was expected at the prison today, the
third anniversary of the bombings, which killed 202 people. The
latest bombings have outraged locals, who have demanded the death
sentences be carried out.

A provincial government spokesman, Gede Rata, said the three
were transferred for "security reasons and overcrowded
capacity".

General Sunarko said Hasan was being held in "a secure location
in Denpasar".

He said Hasan was a construction worker. He is believed to be 45
and to have worked in Malaysia four years ago.

Under anti-terrorism laws, police have seven days to question
him before deciding on charges. General Sunarko refused to say if
Hasan had any direct links to the blast.

A video grab showing Indonesian police holding up a photo of the man they arrested in Jember, East Java under anti-terrorism laws.Photo:CCTV

The Age visited the boarding house off Jalan Nangka
Selatan, which was raided by police yesterday. Neighbours said they
were not sure if the men were the bombers.

One woman, Sulastri, said: "I never spoke to them so I don't
know where they are from. I have seen the pictures of the suspect.
I don't think it's them."

Some local media outlets reported other neighbours said they
recognised one of the occupants from photographs of the bombers'
severed heads.

Convicted Bali bomber Imam Samudra is removed "for security
reasons" from Kerobokan prison in Denpasar yesterday. A day ahead
of the anniversary of the 2002 bombings, he was taken under police
guard with the two other bombers, Ali Gufron and Amrozi, on a
charter flight to a high-security island prison off West Java.
Picture: Reuters

Convicted Bali bomber Imam Samudra is removed "for security
reasons" from Kerobokan prison in Denpasar yesterday. A day ahead
of the anniversary of the 2002 bombings, he was taken under police
guard with the two other bombers, Ali Gufron and Amrozi, on a
charter flight to a high-security island prison off West Java.
Picture: Reuters